Placer-mining machine



July 24, H923. IABZSM,

D. K. SMITH i LACER MINING MACHINE qiled April 11. 1922 Patented July 24, 192.3.4

DAVID K. SMITH, OF DENVER, COLORADO, ASSIGNGR OE ONE-`HALF TO JOHN G. KIRSGH- NER AND ONE-EIGHTH TO LEO C. HOLLBERG, BOTH OE DENVER, COLORADO.`

PLACER-MINING MACHINE. i

. Application filed April 11, 1922. Serial No. 551,516.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, DAVID K. SMITH, citi- Zen of the United States of America, resid-` ing at 208 South Kalamath Street, in the city and countyof Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Placer-Mining Machines;

and' I do declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, .reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. y This invention relates to a placer mining machine and has reference to a machine especially designed for the mining of flour gold.

The object of this invention is :to produce a simple and efficient machine that can be cheaply constructed, easily transported, that is adapted to be operated by water power, and which will collect and save the gold re gardless of the small size of the particles.

It is well known that gold exists in the sands along streams in many parts of this country b ut it often exists `in such fine particles that it has heretofore been impractical `to mine -gold which exists in this form.

By means of the machine invented by me flour lold can be successfully minedregard less of the size thereof, thus opening up a field of mining that has heretofore been undeveloped.

In order to more clearly 4describe my invent-ion I shall have reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 shows a longitudinal section of a sluicewhich is provided with a number of screws for separating the`diferent sizes of material.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the sluice shown in section in Fig. l but having a portion removed to better disclose the construction.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the sluice in which the actual separation of the gold from the sand occurs.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the sluice shown in section in Fig. 3 but with a portion removed so as to better show the construction thereof.

Fig.r5 is a t-ransverse section taken on line 5v5 Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken on line 6 6 Fig; 4.

Fig. 7 is a transverse section taken on line 7-7 Fig. l and Fig. 8 is a. plan view showing the two sluices in operative relation. v

The same reference characters will be used to indicate the same parts in` the several views. 4

Numeral l represents one side of the primary flume or sluice which I will indicate as a wholeby the letter A, 2 represents the opposite side and 3, the bottom thereof. The bottom portion which is indicated by numeral 3 has an opening therein which is covered by a screen 4 preferably of quarter inch mesh. Below the screen 4 I provide a removable portion 5, which rests upon the top of cleats 6, orit may be held in place by any other suitable means. Below the screen 4 I provide a bottom member 7 to the lower end of which a screen 8 is attached; this screen is preferably a one eighth' (Jg) inch mesh and has its lower end secured to the transverse partition member 9L A bottom member l0 is provided beneath screen 8 and extends to the lower end of the sluice; this bottom member has a hole ll, the purpose of which will hereafter appear. Whensluice A is in use a stream of water is directed 'into the upper end thereof and the gold bearing sand and gravel is shoveled into the sluice on top of the bottom member 3. The water will then carry the gravel and other solid particles, which are too large to pass through the screen 4, downwardly over the same and over board 5 from whence vthey pass down onto member l0 and finally are discharged through the lower end of the sluice.

The line sand and the flour gold drops through screen 4 onto the top of bottom board 7 and passes onto the screen 8 by which a further separation takes place, the particles that aretoo large to `passthrough the one eighth inch mesh screen passing out through openinglQ, while the finer particles fall on the top of board l0 and are discharged through opening 1l onto the upper end of sluice B (Fig. 8) which I will now describe.

Sluice B like sluice A is formed by two parallel sides 13 and 14. an end 15 and a bottom 16. The bottom consists of a number of sections, the upperjend of which I'have indicated aS 16 At the lower end of part 16 I provide a screen 17, the lower end of which issecured toa; transverse member 18. A removable section 19 entends fromV 18 to the u per end of the tapering board 20. Screen 17 is preferably a fourteen meshA screen and the particles that enter sluice B from the opening 11 in sluice A and are tool large to pass through the openings in screen 17 flow downwardly overthe tops of boards 19 and 20 and are finally discharged through the lower'end of the sluice. v

The fiour gold and line sand particles pass through screen 17 and onto the bottom board 21 which has a section thereofcut away'so as to providea space forthe amalgamating tank 22 which will presently be described. I desire to call attention `atthis point to the fact' that board 2O is downwardly tapering (Fig. 4,). Between the tapering edge of board 2() and the upper surface of board 21, there is a'spacing strip 23, side 13, bottom 21, top 20 and strip 23 form abox like fiume or chamber through' which all the sand and water which passesthrough screen 17 must flow.l An opening 2a 'in side 13 permits the sand and water to be discharged at the side of the'sluice; The amalgama-tor 22 is semicylindrical and haslrotatably"mounted in the sides thereof Ia brush 25, while .mercury 2,6 fills the amalgamator to a point a short distance below the axle upon which the brush rotates. v v

In order to provide powerffor rotating the brushI mount in suitable bearings 27 and 28 al waterwheel 29 to which water for power is ledby meansof a flume 30. A chain 31 serves'to 'transmit power from the wheel to the brush.

Mixed with the sand-in which the flour gold'is foundither'e is often a .considerable percentage of black or magnetic ironsand and it is preferable' if-this is not permitted to reach and pass through the amalgamator. In order to separate the vblack sand I provide a cylindrical permanent magnet M which is magnetized so as to make one end Na north pole and the other end S a south pole. A sprocket chain 32 serves as a power transmitting means whereby the water wheel rotates the magnet in a. counter-clock-wise direction. The. magnetic action of magnet M will Ycause the iron sand to adhere to its surface and be carried out of the stream as the magnet rotates. In order to remove the sand from the magnet I provide a brush 33 whose bristles contact with the magnet surface and cause the sand to fall into the nonmagnetic trough 34 from which it flows out through the hole 35. y

From the above it will appear that I have invented a mining machine that is of simple and cheap construction, which can be readily constructed and easily transported from place to place and which is so designed that it will collect-and save the finest gold particles and it is therefore especially adapted foilthe mining of what is known as flour go c.

Although I have shown my machine as made in two sections for- `convenience in handling and in transporting I wish it dis tinctly understood that each section does not constitute a different invention but rather that the two sections form one machine and co-operate to produce a certain: result.

Section A performs the grading function while section B performs the magnetic sepa.- rationgthe final gradingand the amalgamating. Section `B may be used by itself where the sand is so fine that the grading which is performed by section A is unnecessary', but section A cannot by itself be employed for the recovery of Hour gold. Forvthe above reasons I claim the entire machine/in its assembled form as well as 'section B specilically.

I-Iaving now described my invention what I claim is: i Y

In a placer mining machine; a sluice of substantially rectangular cross-section adapted to be mounted on an incline; a rotatable magnetic separator near the upper end thereof; a screen in the' bottom of the sluice slightly below the separator; a removable section in the bottom ofthe sluice below said screen; fa'waterwheel in the sluice directly below the removable botto-m section power transmittingY means` connectingk the water wheel tothe separator whereby they-will be forced to rotate in unison; a second sluice located directly below thelirst named sluice and adapted to receive the material that passes through the screen; an amalgamator in the second sluice, a seco-nd power transmitting means connecting the.` amalgamator brush shaft to the water wheel whereby the latter will rotate the former, said amalgamator being located directly below the removable section `and` a passageway from said second named sluice. opening on one side thereof whereby' the waste material from said second sluice will'be discharged to one side thereof. y

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

DAVID n. sMrrH.

llO 

